English Introduction

In English upper class society in the 1800's social galas; such as, balls were quite common social events, allowing the varing influential families of the area to gather and mingle. Often the grandest balls were held by the wealthiest and most influential individuals, each person trying to hold a grander ball than the last, a social arms race that could determine the marital fate of all children in the family. Balls were often used to signal to eligable males of the society that the daughter of the hosting family was being opened to suitors. It also created opertunities for women to entice the males at the gathering, in hopes of the wealthiest males finding interest in them and hopefully resulting in a marriage proposal. In Pride and Prejudice mingling of the influential individuals at the balls plays a vital role in determining the eventual courtships and biased conflicts that proceed in the rest of the novel.